NEW YORK (October 18, 2022) -- Connecticut forward Adama Sanogo has been named 2022-23 BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year by a vote of the league’s head coaches. Villanova forward Cam Whitmore has been chosen BIG EAST Preseason Freshman of the Year. The coaches, who were not permitted to select their own players, also chose an All-BIG EAST First Team, All-BIG EAST Second Team and All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention.
Sanogo, a 6-9 junior, ranked seventh in the BIG EAST last season in scoring with a 15.1 average. He led the league in rebounding with a 9.7 mark and was first in field goal shooting, making 50.9 percent. Sanogo was an All-BIG EAST First Team selection in 2021-22 while helping the Huskies to a 23-10 overall record, a 13-6 BIG EAST mark and an NCAA Tournament bid. As a freshman two seasons ago, the native of Bamako, Mali, made the BIG EAST All-Freshman Team and BIG EAST All-Tournament Team.
Whitmore, a highly rated prep recruit from Odenton, Md., was the Most Outstanding Player of the USA Basketball U18 team that won the FIBA U18 Americas Championship this past summer. The 6-7 forward was a McDonald’s All-America selection and the Gatorade Maryland Player of the Year at Archbishop Spalding High School.
The All-BIG EAST First Team includes two players from Xavier and one from Creighton, Providence and St. John’s.
The Xavier duo is forward Jack Nunge and guard Colby Jones. Nunge, a 7-0 grad student, led the Musketeers in scoring at 13.4 points and in rebounding at 7.4. He was named All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention. Jones, a 6-6 junior, ranked third on the team in scoring at 11.6 and second to Nunge in rebounding at 7.3. Jones was named the MVP of the NIT when the Musketeers captured the title.
Ryan Kalkbrenner, the BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year last season, represents preseason favorite Creighton. The 7-1 junior averaged 13.1 points per game and 7.7 rebounds. He led the BIG EAST with 89 blocked shots and earned All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention and All-Tournament Team honors.
Providence’s Jared Bynum was an All-BIG EAST Second Team selection while directing the Friars to a regular-season league title and an NCAA Tournament run that reached the Sweet 16. The 5-10 grad student averaged 12.2 points and ranked third in the BIG EAST in assists with a 4.9 mark. He also won the BIG EAST Sixth Man Award.
St. John’s Posh Alexander is a Preseason All-BIG EAST First Team pick for a second straight season. Last year, Alexander averaged 13.1 points, led the BIG EAST in steals with a 2.1 mark and ranked second in assists with a 5.6 average. He made All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention.
The Preseason All-BIG EAST Second Team includes six players due to a tie in the voting. There are three players from Villanova, two from Creighton and one from Seton Hall.
The Villanova trio is Justin Moore, Caleb Daniels and Eric Dixon. Moore, a 6-4 senior guard, was seventh in the BIG EAST in scoring with a 14.8 average. He was an All-BIG EAST Second Team pick. Daniels, a 6-4 senior guard, averaged 10.3 points in a sixth-man role. Dixon, a 6-8 redshirt junior, was the team’s frontcourt anchor who averaged 9.1 points and 6.4 rebounds.
The Creighton pair is guard Ryan Nembhard and forward Arthur Kaluma. Nembhard was the BIG EAST Freshman of the Year and Kaluma made the BIG EAST All-Freshman Team. A 6-0 guard, Nembhard averaged 11.3 points and was third in the league with a 4.4 assist average. He averaged 34.8 minutes per game, which ranked third in the BIG EAST. Kaluma, a 6-7 forward, averaged 10.4 points and 5.4 boards.
Seton Hall guard Kadary Richmond averaged 8.8 points, 4.1 assists, 3.6 rebounds and 1.7 steals in his first season with the Pirates. The 6-6 junior ranked fourth in the BIG EAST in assists and fifth in steals.
An All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention group includes three players. For the second year in a row, Butler guard Chuck Harris earned the recognition. The others are Creighton transfer Baylor Scheierman, who was the Summit League Player of the Year at South Dakota State, and Villanova’s Cam Whitmore, the Preseason Freshman of the Year.
2022-23 BIG EAST Preseason Honors
BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year
Adama Sanogo, Connecticut, F, Jr., 6-9, 245, Bamako, Mali
BIG EAST Preseason Freshman of the Year
Cam Whitmore, Villanova, F, Fr., 6-7, 232, Odenton, Md.
Preseason All-BIG EAST First Team
Ryan Kalkbrenner, Creighton, C, Jr., 7-1, 260, St. Louis, Mo.
Jared Bynum, Providence, G, Gr., 5-10, 180, Largo, Md.
Posh Alexander, St. John’s, G, Jr., 6-0, 200, Brooklyn, N.Y.
Colby Jones, Xavier, G, Jr., 6-6, 207, Birmingham, Ala.
Jack Nunge, Xavier, F, Gr., 7-0, 245, Newburgh, Ind.
Preseason All-BIG EAST Second Team^
Arthur Kaluma, Creighton, F, So., 6-7, 225, Glendale, Ariz.
Ryan Nembhard, Creighton, G, So., 6-0, 170, Aurora, Ont.
Kadary Richmond, Seton Hall, G, Jr., 6-6, 210, Brooklyn, N.Y.
Caleb Daniels, Villanova, G, Gr., 6-4, 210, New Orleans, La.
Eric Dixon, Villanova, F, R-Jr., 6-8, 255, Willow Grove, Pa.
Justin Moore, Villanova, G, Sr., 6-4, 215, Fort Washington, Md.
Preseason All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention
Chuck Harris, Butler, G, Jr., 6-2, 200, Ashburn, Va.
Baylor Scheierman, Creighton, F, Sr., 6-7, 205, Aurora, Neb.
Cam Whitmore, Villanova, F, Fr., 6-7, 232, Odenton, Md.
^Tie in the voting created an extra position on the Second Team.